TODAY:

Acts - Intro | An Unstoppable Force in an Impossible Situation

BIG IDEA:

Jesus not only overcomes seemingly impossible situations – He uses them!

SCRIPTURES:

Philemon 1:24, Colossians 4:14, 2 Timothy 4:11, Luke 1:1-4,

Isaiah 41:10, 2 Corinthians 1:3-5, John 16:33

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

Q: Do you think we have it generally better or worse than during the time of

the early Church? What do you base this on?

Q: How do the Scriptures/concepts from this week help you grow as a disciple

who loves God, loves people & serves the world (lives on incarnational

mission) in everyday life?

Q: Based on these Scriptures, how can you move from unbelief to belief, from

just knowing to actually doing in your life?

Connect with God (UP)...

Q: When you study the realities that the followers of Jesus faced in Jerusalem

all the way to Rome, how does it help us understand our own context better?

Q: What does it mean for God to be in sovereign control & able to work

through hardships in a chaotic & broken world?

Q: What does it mean for us to rely fully on Jesus, His Gospel & His Spirit,

instead of any earthly situation, person or system? What things are tempting

to turn to when facing hardships instead of Jesus?

Connect with Others(IN)...

Q: How can you lovingly be an encouragement to other followers of Jesus

around you that God is at work, even in “impossible” situations?

Connect with the World (OUT)...

Q: We talked about this last week, but how can we as a church & as the Church,

be a compelling alternative, counter-cultural community that demonstrates

a different & better way to the world around us? What does that look like?

QUOTES:

“Instead of seeking the power of their culture, they lived out of the reality of the

power of Jesus’ Gospel and of the presence of His Spirit. Nothing they would face –

accusations, imprisonment, beatings, even death – could stop the power of God

moving in and through them. In fact, the hardships they faced from the powers of

their day became the very tool God used to prove His power and spread His Truth

across the world.”